This archive report was first published on 25 August 2020.
Dr. David Matsanga, a Political Scientist and International Relations expert, has observed a disturbing trend in Kenyan politics. In an article published on August 25, 2020, he wrote that corruption is fighting back to taint President Uhuru Kenyatta's legacy.
According to Dr. Matsanga, a group of politicians is using COVID-19 funds as a political decoy to discredit the President and his allies in the war on graft. This group, largely drawn from the Tanga Tanga faction of the ruling party Jubilee, has been packaging unverified and exaggerated information to appeal to the public psyche and drown out intelligent debate on corruption issues.
Dr. Matsanga notes that these individuals were hostile when the DCI took up investigations of corruption scandals such as the Arror and Kimwarer Dam project, declaring the investigations a political witch-hunt. However, now they are quick to throw stones at alleged perpetrators of graft involving COVID-19 monies, even as the EACC and DCI are actively investigating the allegations.
It is perturbing that none of the accusers have supplied evidence to investigative agencies, opting instead to prosecute the cases of corruption online. Dr. Matsanga wonders why the targeted persons are mostly minority and majority leaders and chairs of committees in the national assembly and the senate dealing with matters of finance and health.
He believes that these groups are not fighting corruption but instead, fighting their perceived political enemies to discredit them before the electorate. This is seen in the vicious attacks against any individual perceived to support the President in the war on graft in the country.
Dr. Matsanga concludes that corruption is a monster that must be well understood if the fight against it is to be won. He urges investigative agencies to do their job and allow for proper audit to be done to establish the cause and effect of the alleged scams.
